This invention relates to containers particularly for material such as beverages and other liquids, powdered materials, foods, various liquids over a range of viscosity, etc. and more particularly to unique components of container ends and methods of forming such components. The elements of such ends include end structure formed as an upper part of a container body, either by attachment of the end structure to a container body by various means such as bonding or seaming, or as an integral part of a container body, and to a reclosable cap for such end structures. U.S. Pat. No. 6,015,062 issued 18 Jan. 2000 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,082,944 issued 4 Jul. 2000, both assigned to the same assignee as this application, disclose earlier forms of such a container wherein a detachable lugged cap is fitted to the top of a neck or spout of a an initially independent end structure, e.g. a dome structure or the like, which is combined with a container body, and to a system for making them. The cap forming tools and system are the subject of an International Patent Application entitled LUGGED CAP FORMING SYSTEM, Serial No. PCT/US01/49,392 filed 20 Dec. 2001, published 27 Jun. 2002. Details of that system are not specifically related to the present invention.
The invention herein described is also related published to International Application No. PCT/US02/06046 filed 27 Feb. 2002, entitled DOME FORMING SYSTEM, and to the National application based thereon and filed on the same date as this application. That application discloses a system in which domes, designed to be attached to container bodies, are completely formed using cooperating upper and lower progressive tolls in a reciprocating press. The last few of those tool sets form the thread lugs in the necks of the domes. The thread lugs may include the features disclosed in published International Application No. PCT/US03/20283 filed 26 Jun. 2003, entitled VENTING LUG CAP. It has been determined that separating the thread lug forming function from that system, in addition to simplification, allows the thread lug formation to be performed with upper tools alone in a separate system which can be utilized to formed thread lugs in the necks of domes or in necks formed as integral parts of a container body.